THE MOMENT
"New people!" Gary froze when he spotted the pair of teenagers walking into the coffee shop. He had never seen the tan girl with golden, double-plaited braids wearing a green and brown robe. Nor the pale boy with coppery-red hair and crimson clothes. Gary checked his watch, then took a look around the sidewalk to be sure. The kids should have been at school already, and he recognized every single other pedestrian walking by. He'd seen them countless times even if he never bothered learning their names. Everything else seemed to be running the same way it did every day for the past year; but, the teens were new.
Gary didn't hesitate to change course and head into the same coffee shop. He had nowhere else to be and if they were new, maybe they would believe him about the time loop. He tried sharing his story a few times to a few different people over the year; but, he had trouble coming up with proof. And, it seemed like his closest friends had their own personal issues to deal with. After having been close for years, it felt like three of his friends developed an awkward love triangle overnight; and, it didn't help that the next day kept repeating.
"YOU CAN'T FIRE ME! I QUIT!" a waitress pushed her way out of the coffee shop as Gary reached for the door. She pushed hard enough to hit his hand and even cause some minor pain.
"Oh yeah...," Gary remembered the event too late as he soothed his hand. She hadn't even apologized; but, she never did. After a moment, the pain was gone and he continued into the coffee shop. Gary had forgotten what it felt like to be surprised; but, he froze in his tracks again when he spotted the teens he was following.
"Detective Rerun??" he mumbled to himself to avoid attracting attention. He realized it was odd to stand at the entrance and he casually made his way to a table within earshot of theirs. The teens he followed were talking to a Detective that Gary had met on occasion. When he realized the world was in a time loop, he started exploring more, including the shadier side of town. He met the Detective investigating a case; but, he was never on this side of town at this time of day.
"Well, if Molly's in, I'm in too, of course," Gary listened discreetly and heard Detective Rerun's voice clearly. "What about Steph and Kim?"
"Sorry," the girl replied. Gary couldn't see them from where he was; but, she was the only girl there. "No more room on the team, right now. It's Molly, you, Keys, and me," she answered. "I already have people in mind for the last two spots; but, if they don't want to join we can ask Steph and Kim."
"They were friends with Alis and Surge too..," Detective Rerun replied.
"Yeah, and they should want the best chance possible to get their friends back," a new voice spoke up. Gary assumed it was the teen boy.
"Sorry!" a brunette waitress walked up to Gary's table and gave him a sincere if worn-out smile. "I apologize for the wait, we're a little short-handed," she said. He could hear the conversation still happening behind him and he was much more invested in that than food.
"It's okay," Gary nodded at her. "I'm waiting on someone, I won't need anything until you see someone else sitting here," he said. "Take your time."
"Thank you," she smiled at him and walked off to another table.
"You're right...," Gary heard the Detective's voice once he started paying attention again. "...those two are better choices," he said. "Okay, I'll be available for team practice whenever you want; but, now that I've agreed... why are we betting on a derby match? Can't we all just go attack Spider?"
"Flutter said he's too strong to beat the normal way," the girl replied. "Challenging him in the AlterNet is our only chance."
"FLUTTER can't beat him???" The Detective raised his voice in obvious disbelief.
"Of course, she can," the teen boy spoke up. "Probably."
"She didn't even try," the girl replied. "She couldn't really explain why. All she could say was that because Alis and Surge were involved, she couldn't be. The best she could do was help me negotiate a challenge with Spider; so, we did."
"She said that?" Detective Rerun asked. "She used the word, 'can't'? And, she told you it was because of Alis and Surge?"
"Yeah, why?" the girl asked.
"She's Flutter," the Detective said. "She can do anything she wants. If she can't, there's a reason. I feel like if we find out what that reason is, we'll have a better chance of getting Alis and Surge back."
"Any ideas?" the red-headed boy asked.
"Yeah...," Detective Rerun said. Gary heard a commotion as the trio behind him stood up from their table. He turned as naturally as he could to take a look; the detective flicked his wrist upward and nothing happened. But, he started tapping and poking at empty air. "If you're going to ask Turbo to join, we should start there next; I'm coming with you." he said.
"But, you're questing!" the girl replied. "We didn't want to interrupt you that much, just asking you to join now."
"No," the detective shook his head. "This is way more important now. I can finish this later," he said. He touched invisible air one more time, then dropped his hands to his side.
Gary felt an intense burning and itching sensation on his fingers and he looked in time to see them disintegrating into white powder.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!"
Gary woke up screaming in his bed. It took him a moment to recognize his dim bedroom. The morning sun was peeking around the blackout curtains. He chuckled as he caught his breath; then, he reached over to the nightstand for his phone.
"What a nightmare," he said as he checked the date. The dream was already beginning to fade once he saw the same date as the day before. He chuckled again at his situation and repeated the phrase with a different intonation. "What a nightmare," he said. He was amused for a moment as he turned to get out of bed; then, he stopped.
"Wait, I haven't had a nightmare all year."